Elections that are more interesting

I recently read about Canadians who are heading down to Iowa and Texas to volunteer for the Obama and Clinton campaigns. I think I understand why without having to think too hard about it - US politics are definitely more exciting right  now.

You wouldn't think so; after all, since Canada has a minority government, we are never more than sixty days to an election. If the government loses a confidence motion, the Governor General calls an election, and within sixty new days we go to the polls.

But fortunately for the smooth operation of Canada, our politicians are all acting like grownups. No angry posturing or heated words - instead the four main parties of Canada are mostly collaborating where they can; and where they are not, the parties are strategically voting in ways so as not to precipitate an election.

As I said, this is fortunate for the smooth operation of the government, but very, very boring! No shocking exposés about politicians dallying with attractive lobbyists, no angry leadership candidates exchanging attack ads and parading about with Oprah in tow. No Youtube-fed slogans about hope or experience.

In short, dull... dull... dull.

America, please lend us your politicians for a while? Just a couple of weeks?

The end of instant film

Polaroid's instant film is being phased out I'm sorry to say.

I have a lot of fond memories of Polaroid film, some of them even recent. A few years ago, we gave my youngest daughter, who is a talented photographer, a polaroid camera. On the way back from a trip to British Columbia, she accidentally smacked the picture button, and out came a photo of a man behind us who I don't think we had ever even looked at.

I think she still has that photo, a peculiar souvenir of a now bygone era.

Lame

Can't people think up their own stuff? http://www.obamaorchimp.com/

On the subject of Obama, when I was in Florida recently, I bought his book, just out of curiosity regarding all the hype. While it isn't an exceptionally provocative book by normal-person standards, it has a remarkable amount of candour for a politician whose best years are ahead of him. It is when he describes his interactions with people - meeting his wife, his prospective father in law,  or meeting Senator Robert Byrd - that the book gets really interesting, and you get that rare feeling (where politicians go) that you can actually tell what makes him tick.

That said, I was still kind of hoping, frankly, that Hillary Clinton might get the nomination. Not that I'm any sort of fan of her husband, really, but she should not be blamed for his baggage. It is just that, from the larger philosophical perspective, I feel males really have too much say in the world already, to be honest.

My country has only had a female Prime Minister once, and that was for only a scant seventy days. The US has had forty three male Presidents and appears to be well on its way to a forty fourth, with no other viable women candidates that I can see coming along for yet another generation.

I find that quite depressing personally. Perhaps where change goes, gender resonates more with me as a Canadian than ethnicity, as our largest minority (the Francophone population)  has held the Prime Ministerial office many times.